France: Budget Minister Faces Inquiry on Foreign Bank Account

Budget Minister Jérôme Cahuzac, left, who is leading a crackdown on tax fraud, was told Tuesday that he would face a preliminary investigation into charges that he kept an illegal bank account abroad. Mr. Cahuzac said he welcomed the decision of the Paris prosecutor to open an investigation into what he calls “crazy claims” that he committed tax fraud by holding a Swiss bank account with UBS until 2010, when he then supposedly moved the money to Asia. The accusations were made by Mediapart, a French Web site of investigative journalism, which published a recording of a man it identified as Mr. Cahuzac. He denies that the voice is his and has said he will sue Mediapart.

A version of this brief appears in print on January 9, 2013, on page A6 of the New York edition with the headline: France: Budget Minister Faces Inquiry on Foreign Bank Account. Order Reprints|Today's Paper|Subscribe